[farmerA]

Long story short, I bought a very fancy new doe from one of the top breeders in my state and she came with the gift of lice. Joy! I now have 7 does and 4 kids affected. Thankfully my boys on the other side of the garden are totally fine.

I'm deathly allergic to chemicals and pesticides (anaphylactic allergic, and also allergic to epinephrine so a literal potential death sentence for me). For the past week I have been treating everyone in the birth house with tea tree oil in a liquid coconut oil base along their top line and sides, rubbed in, let it sit, nit comb a few hours later plus wondercide spray all over which is an amazing natural cedar based insecticide spray. I've been treating them once or twice a day each and the kids usually only have between maybe two and nine louse on them at any given time so I'm really trying to treat the moms but once I get halfway through to get bitchy and run off. I get it -- it takes forever. I'm also swapping out bedding every few days and spraying it down with wondercide and sprinkling it with tea tree oil mixed in baking soda until I can get some food grade DE. We live pretty much in the middle of nowhere and the only place within 40 mile radius that carries it wants $50 for 10 lbs and thanks to covid I can't afford that. I just remembered that I do actually have First Saturday Lime in the chicken coop which is goat safe and I haven't tried that so I will (masked because that causes me breathing problems too, along with DE). I also have some powdered sulfur which I've never tried before but heard works wonders. With all of this though, I feel like I'm missing something because a lot of people say just do this for a couple of days and they're good to go but that's not the case with me.

With two kiddings in the past week and a half and everything else going on, I haven't even gotten to start treating the other five does or their two houses. They are all pregnant and if I find that it's safe, I'm half tempted to pay someone to use Cylence on them because this has been kind of a nightmare but then I literally can't touch them or pet them probably for a week and I worry about them going into labor in that time. Two of my girls are due next week, and one the following week. I'm also afraid that poisons like that will get in their system and effect their milk in addition to affecting me. Does anyone know if that's true? I really don't want to have to use anything if I have to dump their milk on top of everything else.

I also found a natural spray by UltraCruz that's labeled for flies and ticks but someone commented that it worked on lice. Has anyone ever tried that? If you've ever had lice and don't opt to use chemicals you definitely can relate to how exhausting this is.

I had lice one other time when I had four bottle babies and a brand-new bale of straw. At that time I didn't know straw could carry lice or their eggs. I used the wondercide spray everyday for a week and it was gone. I don't understand why it's taking so much time this round. Maybe because the mamas have such thick fur and I'm not seeing/getting everything? Any tips would be soooo appreciated!

Pro tip: it doesn't matter how fancy the breeder is that you're buying from or how much your goat costs, check them for lice before you bring them home. That's the first time I've ever bought a goat from anyone other than my original breeder and I'm kicking myself.

As always, I love you, goat people! ♡

 

[ksalvagno]

Lice takes a while to get rid of. I think someone said Vet Rx also works but I personally haven't tried it.

 

[goathiker]

Pick 1 gallon size bouquet of scouring rush ferns.
Bring 2 gallon of water to a boil.
Add scouring rush broken into pieces.
Simmer for 10 minutes.
Set aside to cool.
When cool enough to handle strain rushes away from the liquid.
Add a couple cups of urine (sorry).
Let sit overnight at room temperature.
Stir very well to mix the urea through the liquid.
Put into spray bottles and spray goats down to the skin, shaking the bottle periodically.

 

[farmerA]

Lice takes a while to get rid of. I think someone said Vet Rx also works but I personally haven't tried it.

I totally forgot about that but I have read it as well and I have it. I'm going to try that tomorrow. Thank you!

 

[farmerA]

Pick 1 gallon size bouquet of scouring rush ferns.
Bring 2 gallon of water to a boil.
Add scouring rush broken into pieces.
Simmer for 10 minutes.
Set aside to cool.
When cool enough to handle strain rushes away from the liquid.
Add a couple cups of urine (sorry).
Let sit overnight at room temperature.
Stir very well to mix the urea through the liquid.
Put into spray bottles and spray goats down to the skin, shaking the bottle periodically.

Thank you! At first I was super bummed because I was thinking we didn't have scouring rush fern here but we do. We just call it horsetail. We have it all over our forest and along our creek which is awesome. To clarify, on the urine, are you talking about goat pee or human? That doesn't sound super fun but it sounds way more fun than lice. How often do you repeat this?

 

[goathiker]

Once is usually enough. As they dry in the sun the ammonia property of the urine should unstick the eggs. Plus it keeps them from licking the horsetail liquid.
What it does is kill the lice with vitamin B deficiency.
I haven't done this in the winter with dormant plants though. I usually make the liquid in the spring from new growth.

It doesn't matter whose urine lol.
Just don't let them lick themselves until they are dry.

 

[farmerA]

Thank you. @goathiker! This is great information. Of course I will be giving everyone a nice lavender bath after this. I haven't checked to see if we have much new growth around here but it has been quite nice and warm lately so hopefully we have some fresh horsetail. I'll go foraging tomorrow. I'll definitely make sure no one licks themselves but I can't imagine they would. Well... goats. Maybe.

 

[goathiker]

Give it time to work though. You can give them a pile of cedar chips to roll in. Give it a week at least, you'll find that they take care to roll it off themselves unless they don't have access to a clean grassy area.

 

[farmerA]

I'll see about getting some cedar chips. Or borrow a wood chipper to make my own. That would be great for them! They have access to probably two acres of a nice grass. We are in Oregon though and they think they're allergic to rain and wet grass so they haven't been outside much in the last few weeks. It's probably adding to the problem, I'm sure. But their door is always open from sunrise to sunset so they can come and go as they please.

 

[littleheathens]

We've gotten it and successfully treated it with abundant sunshine/avoiding the indoor bedding as much as possible, and vet Rx.

 

[farmerA]

We've gotten it and successfully treated it with abundant sunshine/avoiding the indoor bedding as much as possible, and vet Rx.

That's great! I'm going to kick the girls out of their house because miraculously, it's actually sunny today. I've been changing their bedding every other day and spraying it and sprinkling it and holy cow, it's exhausting with seven does and three houses. I have a brand new bottle of Vetrx and am getting on that now. Thank you!!! ♡

 

[farmerA]

Quick question, @littleheathens, how long after you applied the vetrx did you nit comb them? And did you just put it on their top line or cover their whole back and sides?

 

[littleheathens]

I just put it on their top line. It was summer and the doe kidded inside so they all had it. They were affected around their ears so I tried to get it behind and under ears (away from eyes) also. I never combed.

I think I bought a horse fly spray too...Equi-something in a gray spray bottle? If I remember right I sprayed that in the stall when I knew there wouldn't be animals in there for a long stretch (whatever the bottle directed)...that's all a little fuzzy but I think that was a permethrin product.

Tea tree oil is a favorite of mine, I may have used that, too, either on the goats or bedding.

 

[farmerA]

Thank you, @littleheathens. I'm trying VetRx today as nothing else is working 100% yet. It's possible they're just scratching from leftover itchiness from the lice since they are/were biting lice. I didn't really find anything on them on Friday and didn't look yesterday but they are scratching a bit this morning.

I've been using tea tree but it's possible I've not doing it strong enough. I've been cleaning out the house every other day, put down diatomaceous earth and bought sulfur but didn't know until I read it but it says do not inhale, keep away from eyes, do not ingest so it's not a food grade sulfur. I don't feel comfortable using that now that I'm reading the small print. I haven't gotten to try the worst he'll recommendation because all of ours is dead and doesn't have any good juices in it yet. I went on a 2-hour foraging spree and found almost nothing.

Part of the problem is it's winter and we live in Oregon so no one really wants to come outside very much. Hopefully we can get this all squared away soon so I don't have to find someone to use chemicals on them for me. What a pain! Of course I have 2 does do the kid within the next 4 days and one seems imminent so that's been a distraction, lol. Everything always happens at once with these little loves, doesn't it? No issues for a year-and-a-half then ten things at once.

 

[GoofyGoat]

Can you get Cedarcide instead of wondercide? Cedarcide is the original product and that formula works great.
I spray neem oil down On the floor of my barn then I use a 3 to 1 mix of pine and cedar chips In my doe barn in the summer it really helps keep the fly and biting bugs out of there.
I’m no fan of DE because it’s bad for my lungs and my animals too so I won’t use it except in my garden beds..
Quick lime works well when mixed with salt And water as a wall wash for the Chicken coop. I’m doing mine this week hopefully. I love how clean and bright it makes things.
Good luck! I hope you find something that works well.

 

[NigerianDwarfOwner707]

I LOVE VetRX for lice. First I comb. Then I apply. Then I comb once more

Works so fast, it's not even funny :heeheecheers)

 

[farmerA]

Can you get Cedarcide instead of wondercide? Cedarcide is the original product and that formula works great.
I spray neem oil down On the floor of my barn then I use a 3 to 1 mix of pine and cedar chips In my doe barn in the summer it really helps keep the fly and biting bugs out of there.
I'm no fan of DE because it's bad for my lungs and my animals too so I won't use it except in my garden beds..
Quick lime works well when mixed with salt And water as a wall wash for the Chicken coop. I'm doing mine this week hopefully. I love how clean and bright it makes things.
Good luck! I hope you find something that works well.

We used cedarcide for years and then they went out of business which is when we found wondercide. Are they back in business? I love their products so much! All of those ideas are so great! I was just reading about neem oil and plan to buy some. I've only used DE in the goat-house once, which was 2 days ago I had to have my husband do it because I'm like you. It really messes with my lungs. But we put at least 6 inches of bedding on top and I kicked around when they're a bit if it would bother me and it didn't so hopefully it doesn't bother the girls.

I haven't tended to my girls that aren't in the birth house yet because things have just been so busy but realized today when I nit combed everyone in the birth house and really inspected, I was seeing dry skin flakes and not nits. Soooo.... I think I've been over treating with the tea tree and cedar and dried their skin out. So now I'll use some healing neem oil and give them some extra boss. It's so funny. I was freaking out for so long thinking they weren't going away without realizing that they were gone. I'm definitely getting on the other girls tomorrow and hopefully within a week's time will be done. Such a nightmare!

Incidentally, I read that only goats that are deficient in Sulfur will actually even get lice so I'm going to get some MSM powder to put out free choice. A lot of people recommend putting it in their feed but I prefer offering things knowing that they will use what they need. Never in a million years would I have thought of a sulfur deficiency.

 

[farmerA]

I LOVE VetRX for lice. First I comb. Then I apply. Then I comb once more

Works so fast, it's not even funny :heeheecheers)

That's so exciting! I realized today that those two moms and all of their kids are completely free of lice so I can get working on the other 5 girls in a different house. I have a brand new full bottle of that RX and I'm going to order two more I just to have as backup. But as I said in my previous comment in response to someone else, I was reading that goats can't get lice unless there sulfur deficient switch I never would have thought of. So another recommendation is Sulfur powder that you can buy at a garden store but I don't like the idea of that because there are lots of warnings about don't get in the eyes or breathe the dust. Or a more expensive but safer option is MSM powder. I'm ordering some of that as well.

 

[GoofyGoat]

Interesting about the sulfur, I keep a small sulfur block out with my other licks and haven’t had lice in a couple of years...I never put two and two together. I impulsively bought it at Atwoods one day and thought if they wanted it they could have it. I guess it’s working. Thanks for the insight.

 

[NigerianDwarfOwner707]

I am not super sold on the sulfur thing. I've seen it 100% not work and goats with sulfur blocks still get lice and I also from personal experience can say that I have high sulfur in my water and do struggle with lice. If anything, once I filtered it, I haven't had lice.